The generated map was opened in Photoshop to paint the details and to mix with other textures. Initially, I opened the normal map and modified the levels, curves and saturation and then it was blended in Soft Light mode (Fig.21).

Fig. 21

Taking a copy of this map and then tweaking it again helped me to apply details, highlights and shadows to the texture. Then I touched up it by using the Photoshop paint tools (Fig.22).

Fig. 22

I added more detail to the map, making use of some brushes and mixing it with some other textures. I also worked with a color palette with similar tones to the initial colors to create a uniform graduation, especially for the skin tones (Fig.23).

Fig. 23

To complete this process, I added some details of stains and imperfections on the skin and finished working with the AO (Ambient Oclussion) map. To get this map, I went to Max and used the Render to Texture dialog again, but this time I used the high poly model for the projection. Finally it was applied as a layer in Photoshop in Multiply mode (Fig.24).

Fig. 24

Real-Time Rendering and Compositing

New toys always make me happy, and one of the things I enjoyed a lot about this project was the fact that I got to try, for the first time, Toolbag. Toolbag is a simple tool that uses the Marmoset game engine and includes a real time model viewer. In my professional career I've had the opportunity to work with some advanced game engines such as Unreal and Unity, and although these are very powerful tools for game development, they are not so intuitive or easy to use. With Toolbag I was able to quickly test different camera angles so that I could decide which was more suited for the final presentation.

I started placing the model on the pedestal in Max and making small adjustments, such as the position of the feet and the location of the pieces of the road. These were then exported as an obj file so that I could open it later in Toolbag (Fig.25).

Fig. 25

Once inside of Toolbag I went to the Material Editor and imported the model. Then I applied a Phong material and added the textures created in the previous stage. With the shader set up and render options on default, all I did was take some screen shots (Fig.26).